The Guilty Beauty Of A Game -By Uzoma Chukwuocha

Nothing good, they say, comes easy. Gold, precious as it is, comes with impurities. This curious tango between genius and a little bit of vice is found across all of sports and other fields of human thriving, but is most evident in this beautiful game of football. If we allow ourselves a little whiff of honesty, we would all guiltily agree that this odd mix of vice spice makes our beloved heroes and geniuses a whole lot more intoxicating. So let’s look at some of these geniuses that we are so fatally attracted to, and why it is so.

MARADONA

Say what you may about this bubbly round ball of skills tricks and intrigue; how he is not as good as Pele, how he’s a cheat for scoring with his hand against England in Mexico’86 and called it the hand of God, how he’s full of himself; you just can’t deny the rush you get when you see him dancing with the ball around props called opponents. He barely needed his team mates, sometimes you get the feeling he could do without them.

This is not an endorsement of Diego’s ills, and there are many of them. He’s a drug abuser. He cheated on England. He was once a wanted man in Italy. He’s denied entrance in some countries. But hey, he’s Diego Amando Maradona. The one Lionel Messi is trying to be like when he grows up; but there’s still that little business of winning the World Cup Lionel. All hail Diego ! Bad as he is.

ZIDANE

The supreme ballerina, poetry in motion, the wise bald man. This is the man that took France finally to the promised land. 

The appetite of a nation was whetted by a golden generation of players comprising Platini, Tigana et al, who after winning the 1980 European Nations Cup could not go the final mile to win the World Cup. 

Just when France had given up on the elusive diadem, along came this languid young boy of Algerian parents. He had a pseudo-lazy sway to his game like he was intentionally sleepwalking. The ball loved his touch, like a damsel would the touch of a charming prince. He deceives to hurt. From France to Italy and Spain he left a trail of an erotic kind of football you only see in early morning dreams.

He was an avid martial artist, he showed it against Bayer Leverkusen when he pivoted on his right foot and volleyed with his left into the top right angle.

He had a temper; he showed it when he floored Matterazzi with a head butt to the chest to seal his glorious career.

CANTONA

The only statistic that can match the number of controversies that followed this genius would be the number of spectacular goals he scored.

Eric was the maverick of mavericks. When jerseys used to have collars he always had his turned up. When the premiership in England was finding its feet, Eric put it on a pedestal. When Manchester United was learning how to be perennial champions, Eric gave them the needed arrogance. 

When a certain soccer fan wouldn’t stop running his mouth in the stands, Eric flew straight to him with an axe kick.

To this day this is the only man SAF could not tame.

This game is beautiful because it is spicy. It is sweet because it has roses and thorns. From Joey Barton to Roy Keane, Ruud Gullit to Etim Esin to Jide Oguntuase, Tarila Okoronwata, the list goes on and on, the intrigue keeps the beat going.

This is the beautiful game for a reason. We all are guilty of loving these tainted gems.

Written by Uzoma Chukwuocha.

uzchuks2005@yahoo.com

Uzoma Chukwuocha is a Nigerian trained MD, practicing in the US. He is working on his first Book.

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